Latvia pulls off one of the biggest wins in recent history by beating Hungary 9:0 in Beijing Olympic hockey qualifier

RIGA - The Latvian national men's hockey team scored another crushing win in the 2022 Beijing Olympic hockey qualifying tournament by downing Hungary 9:0 (1:0, 0:0, 8:0) at Arena Riga on Friday.

Although the final score may not show it, this was a close match up until the beginning of the third period when Latvia was leading just 1:0. At that point, the Hungarian team seemed to have run out of gas and Latvia capitalized by scoring eight unanswered goals.

Rudolfs Balcers had three goals and three assists, while captain Teodors Blugers, Ronalds Kenins and Rodrigo Abols scored two goals each.

In another Group E qualifier today, France beat Italy 2:0.

As reported, in the first Group E matches of the Beijing Olympic qualification tournament, Latvia beat Italy 6:0, while France defeated Hungary 5:3.

Latvia will conclude the tournament on Sunday against France.

Only the winner of the tournament will qualify for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.